I am a social activist (not afraid to call myself LIBERAL in capital letters) who is passionate about peace and loves to read, travel to developing countries, listen to/see provocative lectures and plays -- and drink mojitos!

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As Israel continues to pound the Gaza Strip, and factions within
the beleaguered territory retaliate as best they can, there are
many myths and stereotypes dominating mainstream media coverage,
and many conversations.

After a horrifically interminable 48 hours of traveling, I am at
home, and looking back at my trip to Pakistan with a bit more
distance and perspective. If there is a unifying theme as my
thoughts crystallize it is this: There
is always more than one narrative, and it is incumbent
upon/… Read full post »

Throughout my stay in Pakistan, I have been noting similarities in
the challenges faced by the people in the frontier regions here and
in Gaza. Both populations are under daily threat by foreign
drones (U.S. vs. Israel), the movement of both groups is tightly
controlled, and both peoples are ju… Read full post »

“I will never forget what the American soldiers did to my
country, my tribe and my family. They violated our national
sovereignty and our Islamic laws. They killed my son and my younger
brother. They destroyed my home. If I see the soldiers who
are responsible for this – if I… Read full post »

Abdul was just 20 years old when he drove his father to the medical
clinic one day for an exam. He dropped his father off, then left to
run a few errands, saying nonchalantly that he would be back by the
time the tests were done. But..he never showed up at… Read full post »

Nine of us arrived in Islamabad very early Wednesday, at 3 a.m. It
was a long flight, but our fatigue didn’t last long…We
walked into the terminal to the waiting arms of a throng of
welcomers, throwing rose petals, taking pictures and chanting.

My friends and family have gradually gotten used to the fact that
the fight for Palestinian rights is my passion; they may not
understand it totally, but they accept and even embrace it. A few
have even occasionally asked me why I don’t just move to the
Gaza Strip, where I… Read full post »

As all eyes of the world are on the Egyptian protesters struggling
to oust Hosni Mubarak from power, residents of the Gaza Strip are
struggling to cope with the ripple effects. With the border between
the two abandoned and sealed shut, fuel imports have been cut off,
and hundreds of people… Read full post »

As news of the uprisings in a growing number of Arab countries
spread like wildfire around the world, residents of other countries
struggling under their own oppressive governments and soaring
unemployment were celebrating on the streets, on Twitter and on
Facebook. The occupied Gaza Strip was no exc… Read full post »

In my last post I rather critically examined the motivations
and impact of foreign visitors to Palestine. And I received several
very good comments in return. (I hope more of you will comment via
email, or on this site now that the comment function is turned
on.)

Just as humans by their very nature tend to “gawk”
when driving by traffic accidents, people seem to gravitate to
places that have appeared in the news for all the wrong reasons.
Thus, the term “disaster tourism” has been coined,
describing the phenomenon of travellers visitin… Read full post »

No matter how many times I come to Gaza, each time I enter it is
the same.With each step I am able to take
inthe
game of chess it takes to get into the Strip, my heart beats a
little faster. …until I finally pass every obstacle thrown
in my way… Read full post »

This will be my fourth trip to Gaza over the last two years. Warned
by my contacts at UNRWA (United Nations Relief & Works Agency)
that Israel has cracked down on traffic through its Erez checkpoint
since the Mavi Marmara murders, I decided to travel in through
Egypt instead. It was… Read full post »

The last time I wrote
I was still living in Gaza City, debating whether to stay or return
to the States. Ultimately, I decided it was time to return to my
“other home” – for my two daughters (the youngest
of whom was graduating from high school), my health (the
lack… Read full post »

I have been away from "home" (I put
that in quotation marks, since the concept has become a little
fluid for me) since Dec. 27: 40 days in Cairo,
trying to get into Gaza through Rafah, unsuccessfully. Then --
after friends at UNRWA intervened and got me in through Israel's
Erez/… Read full post »

With
the never-ending stream of news about Israeli incursions, crushing
poverty, skyrocketing unemployment and scarce healthcare, success
stories coming out of Gaza may seem an oxymoron. But they are there
– you just have to look a little harder for them. A case in
point is the four Jadallah br… Read full post »

Since I last wrote, my life has taken some crazy
turns. I left Gaza to work for a new Council for
European-Palestinian Relations in Brussels, but after two weeks of
unremitting bad luck/karma, I returned to the comfort of my
friends in Gaza and am continuing my work from here. I… Read full post »

March 16 is
the seventh anniversary of the death of Rachel Corrie, the
23-year-old International Solidarity Movement (ISM) volunteer who
was run over by an Israeli army bulldozer while she was trying to
stop the demolition of a home in the Gaza Strip. Her parents, Cindy
and Craig Corrie, a/… Read full post »

Trying to make a living as a farmer in Gaza these
days is taking a toll on the family ties so integral to the
Palestinian culture. Traditionally, occupations are passed from
father to son for generations, and their tie to the land is
particularly strong. Before Israel imposed a suffocating
blockade… Read full post »

Racism must be stamped out wherever it occurs, but when it
rears its ugly head in an institution as prestigious as Harvard
University, an immediate, international response – including
punishment of the offender – is required if we are to defend
our status as an enlightened society.… Read full post »

This is an editorial I have written for the Palestine
Telegraph, for which I am working now, and that I hope to place as
an op-ed elsewhere.Btw, I encourage everyone to read
the book, Kill Khalid, which documents the Mossad's earlier attempt
on Mishaal's life. It is a fascinating read/… Read full post »

Below is an article I
have written for the Inter Press Service on "growing up as a girl
in Gaza." At the conclusion, I have added some personal thoughts
that didn't make it into this word-limited article.